In Suspension
by theblissofdiscord
Summary: The long-awaited reunion of Team Avatar is a little more complicated than it seems. When Korra comes back, Asami doesn't know what to think, Mako is too busy with his Prince Wu woes, and Bolin is struggling with trust issues towards the supposed "Great Uniter" and his perplexing relationship with Opal. Sadly, the disastrous Earth Kingdom situation isn't helping at all. Semi-Canon.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: First attempt at sharing my writing, and pleased for it to be a Korrasami fic. Trying to make it as close to canon as possible, but you know, this "kid's" show would be completely dropped if this pairing were to be shipped on air.. sadly. Nevertheless, hope you enjoy!

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><p>The first rays of sunlight have barely settled on the silent city, showering sleepy homes and buildings with brilliant gold, when Asami is pulled away from her dreams by strings of consciousness.<p>

She opens her eyes slowly, her pupils quickly adjusting to the familiar sight of her bedroom wall. To the side lay her wardrobe, filled extravagantly with overpriced clothing made of silk and fur and lavishly-manufactured fabric.

At the back of her incoherent mind, thoughts circle lazily on the choice of ensemble she would wear today, and when she would actually find time to sort out the garb which she plans to donate to the Earth Kingdom's currently frenzied people.

Her eyelids are heavy, and the striking emerald of her irises are once again blocked from the world when she lets them droop back down, unwilling to fight the need for sleep which she lacks so much of. But she does so anyway.

With a sigh, she pushes herself up and sits on the edge of the bed, eyes never opening. Breathing steadily, she counts down from ten and lists the ten things she is thankful for today – a habit she had adopted to stabilize her emotionality every morning since the betrayal of her father. While it is now merely a practice she has gotten used to, it was previously one she clung on to desperately to keep herself from spending her days weeping.

Asami notes the orange shining through the lids of her eyes.

Ten. _The sun is bright, and the day is going to be lovely._

Her legs kick out into the air.

Nine. _It feels good to be alive and moving around._

She remembers Tenzin and his family, Mako and Bolin.

Eight. _I am welcome in this home, where I am among friends and family._

She wonders what the day has in store for her.

Seven. _New experiences await me today, like every other._

Confidence manifests itself as she recalls the latest advancement of Future Industries, mostly due to her wits and intelligence.

Six. _There is still much to do for the company- Okay, no, maybe that's not really something I'm looking forward to right now._

Frowning, she remembers the string of events two months prior and shudders.

Five. _I am safe and everyone I love is safe._

In particular, she remembers one sun-kissed girl with dazzling azure eyes that are so deep, one can drown in them.

Four. _Korra is safe._

The corners of her mouth turn up to form a small smile.

Three. _I get to see her._

Her heartbeat quickens a little. She could feel it through her chest and she shudders.

Two. _I get be there for her._

Asami's eyes open, and she stands hastily, half-jogging to the restroom to freshen up.

One. _Right now._

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><p>The soft click of the door wakes her from an untroubled sleep. She may be facing the adjacent wall, but she already knows who had come in unannounced, and what she has brought with her. Eyes open, she waits until her friend takes a few steps towards her bed before she turns and greets her with the best smile she could muster in the groggy state she is currently in. She has always hated mornings, and she always will.<p>

"Good morning," Asami says in a jovial tone, not really looking at her as she props the tray of food she is carrying on the bedside table, and grabs a chair to sit on. "Hope you had a good sleep."

Korra notices her lack of nightmares as she stretches her aching arms, yawning loudly. "Great sleep. You?"

Asami's eyes finally meet hers and, as usual, the blue-eyed girl cannot bring herself to look away. "Me too." She looks away and furrows her brows. "I dreamt about Naga and Pabu. They were a crime-solving duo or something like that." She shuffles and a sheepish expression crosses her face. "I swear, I have the weirdest dreams. They could talk and walk upright. They were even wearing detective outfits!"

Korra couldn't help but laugh. Asami had told her about her dreams before, and many of them were just as amusing as this one. "Yeah, you do." Fighting her body's tiredness from the intense physical therapy session the day before, Korra sits up with a bit of a struggle. From the corner of her eye, she notices Asami's arms reflexively reach out to help her and then freeze as the older woman remembers the Avatar's thirst for doing things on her own.

"Still sore from yesterday, hm?" Asami asks. If she feels any concern, her face does not show it.

Satisfied and grateful, the shorter woman nods her head before letting out an exaggerated groan. "Katara made me do like twenty pull-ups. Twenty. After not doing pull-ups for so long, you know how.." She struggles for the appropriate word. Korra knows pain – she probably knows it much better than anyone now. To classify the throbbing in her muscles from overexertion yesterday as pain would be like comparing the yellow of lemons to the crimson of blood. "..Intense that is? Gran Gran is crazy."

Asami chuckles softly, and to Korra's ears, it's like the beautiful ringing of wind chimes. "Sounds like you're getting your old strength back," she says happily, bending forward and resting her chin on her hand. "Before you know it, you'll be bending like you used to."

At this, Korra turns away and frowns, feeling the stinging behind her eyes. She remembers what her waterbending master had told her yesterday, having finally concluded the actual severity of her leg injuries. "Katara says it will take at least a year for my legs to recover. And by that I mean just to stand. My legs will be thin sticks by then." Removing the blanket covering her limbs, she stares longingly at them. They've already begun to lose all the muscle she's built up in her seventeen years. "Bending is going to have to wait a while."

The older woman, consumed by guilt, absentmindedly places her hand on Korra's. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be.. You know, insensitive. I just didn't know."

With the contact, Korra had pushed her oppressive feelings to the back of her mind and analyzed the sensation of Asami's callused fingers on the back of her much more callused hand. She still can not explain the sudden pounding of her heart in her chest and the rush of blood to her cheeks whenever her friend touched her, despite it being weeks since she first noticed her body's responses.

In spite of the substantial distraction, some part of her still manages to catch the engineer's apology, and her feeling of remorse.

Immediately, she feels terrible for subjecting her friend to her own depressing emotions. After a few weeks of lashing out at everyone post-battle with Zaheer and keeping to herself, she had realized that she needed her friends now more than ever and made a personal promise never to victimize them with a toxic attitude ever again. This may not be one of the same awful situations as before, but it still hurt to see the look of regret on the other woman's face. She waves her hand carelessly, allowing a breeze to rustle Asami's raven hair. "It's fine. I mean, I can still bend with my arms at least." In case that isn't enough to reassure her, she shows off a dazzling grin, albeit it never quite reaching her eyes.

Asami, seemingly flushed at the sudden blow of wind past her, returns a smile of her own, which is far more sincere. Then her eyes widen and dart to where the two women are touching. She awkwardly pulls her hand away, leaving Korra very relieved, and mildly disappointed. "Oh, um, you should eat. Pema made you sea prune stew. Which is probably cold now, damn."

The Avatar laughs quietly, lighting a small flame on the edge of her finger and arching an elegant brow at her friend, as if to say: _Bending, remember?_ She reaches for the bowl on her bedside and places it on top of the flame, a small smile plastered to her face as she watches steam dissipate into air. "Breakfast in bed, the salvation of all mornings."

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><p><em>Three years later...<em>

Asami jolts awake with a start. After a half minute of panting and inwardly calming herself down, she sighs and swings her legs over the side of the bed. She had grown to hate the piece of furniture long ago for being much too large and having too much space for a lone occupant, but she couldn't be bothered to purchase a new one. Her nails dig into the soft mattress covered in velvet as she recalls the nightmares that have plagued her for months, reliving them over and over when sleep takes her consciousness away.

They were always the same. The always provided the same gruesome detail that one would believe to be real. They always frightened Asami, ate away at her sanity until she awoke sweaty and stiff and utterly horrified. Sometimes she cried. But today, she doesn't.

Instead, she glares at her alarm; She had beaten it by a minute. When it does ring, she lets it go on for a while, immersing herself in the piercing drone so that the nightmare may fade into the edges of her mind, never quite leaving but at least allowing her to focus on the tasks at hand.

Today, she has a lot of things going for her: The grand reopening of Republic City's Central City Station in which she will be prominently featured as the head of the project – the amazing visionary, as some people called her, the reunion dinner at Air Temple Island in the evening, and lastly, perhaps most importantly, seeing Korra for the first time in _three_ years.

_Korra._

The name sends a whirlwind of emotions through her, and she feels overwhelmed enough to drop back down on the wretched bed and cover her face with a silky pillow.

She remembers the day long ago, when the famed Avatar had left Republic City – and along with it, her old life, her old friends, and _her. _Korra had left her. Of course, back then, she hadn't known that, since the wheelchair-bound woman promised an absence of only "a couple weeks".

And so, Asami, having been raised in an industry that demanded patience, waited a couple of agonizing weeks for her friend's return. She sent letters along with Bolin, which were never returned. A couple weeks turned into a couple months, and she still got up every morning hopeful that the day would see Korra on her doorstep, sporting a bright and enthralling smile – one that she had consistently given Asami alone after Zaheer seemed to have wiped it away completely from display.

It took a year to break her, to finally lose hope of the woman she inexplicably longed for coming back to her. She had spent weeks mulling over whether or not to get on a ship and to the South Pole, where the apparently 'still recovering Avatar' – as Tonraq had put it in one of his letters to Tenzin – was sure to be situated. But during the long wait she had endured, she had realised and understood the reason Korra had rejected her offer of accompaniment in the first place; Asami had a life in Republic City. In need of a friend or not, Korra couldn't allow her to leave everything behind just like she had.

And she probably knew that she wasn't coming back, at least not soon. Maybe that was why she had convincingly declared a supposed return date. Asami, had she known Korra was going to take three years to recover elsewhere, would have packed everything and joined her in an instant, and nothing the younger woman said or did would have stopped her.

Despite feeling a sense of betrayal at this realisation, the industrialist knew that Korra had been right to refuse. Her company, as a result of her working so hard to occupy her thoughts while Korra was away, had spiraled back to the top in a matter of months. As badly as she wanted to be there for her friend, she simply could not stray too far from her destined path. And judging by the Water Tribe girl's decision to forget them all – evident in her disinterest in communicating despite having the means – she was probably not wanted in the South Pole anyway.

So she stayed, and her company blossomed even more. Now, she is the woman everyone in Republic City looks up to, aside from Korra herself. And really, it is hard not to with the latter, considering she has a giant statue in a park, which, bears even her name.

Asami passes by the statue everyday, unable to help herself, because in spite of everything, she truly misses her. And tonight, she is finally able to see her again, in all her animated glory and not the lifeless figure surrounded by shades of green. But she wouldn't know what to do when she does.

_A forced smile, perhaps. An accusing stare. A hug, or a caress? _The sleepless woman is torn between showing affection to her long lost friend or planting a seed of animosity that would portray all the distasteful emotions Asami felt at her departure. She'll decide upon it later, she figures.

Removing the pillow to get a breath of fresh air, she is surprised to feel a chill on her face, and realises that parts of it are moist with fresh tears. Wiping them away, she sits up and smashes her alarm clock a little harder than she should have, putting an end to its blaring noise. She absently looks back on a morning ritual she used to carry out unfailingly, once upon a time, when she thought Korra hadn't given up on them. But it became increasingly difficult to find optimism, when the one person who inspired it had vanished from her world. The habit was dropped a couple years ago. Instead, she puts on a mask, and wills herself to survive another day.

* * *

><p>The opening ceremony of the new railway system went by without a hitch. Deafening cheers and long-lasting applause sought their way to Asami's ears, and people exclaimed praises meant for her and her work. Humble and incorruptible despite her fame and wealth, the woman of the hour did not let them get to her head. She graciously thanked her supporters, patiently addressing and interacting with them one after another - brief congratulatory chats that satisfied them more than herself.<p>

Still, she made sure to keep a pleasant smile on her face throughout all the hand-crushing handshakes, uncomfortable half-hugs, and straight-out disturbing inquiries she encountered.

However, this one was too much to bear.

Asami found herself stuck in conversation with none other than the spoiled, narcissistic, good-for-nothing future King of the Earth Kingdom she had heard so much about from her occasional bump-ins with Mako. And spirits, was her ex-lover right.

"I do like the idea of putting you on a train and sending you far, _far _away," she says truthfully with as much disgust in her tone as her polite nature would allow her.

The obnoxious prince doesn't catch the drift and continues on with an introduction that is appropriate for first-time meetings, but completely unnecessary this time around.

"I'm Prince Wu," he declares arrogantly, a small bow making his shorter form seem even shorter. "Future King."

Asami could only raise an elegant brow at him. "Yeah, I'm aware of who you are," she replies as nonchalantly as she could, dragging out the 'yeah' to make it obvious that she is unimpressed, and for that matter, uninterested.

Yet again, he refuses to acknowledge this and continues on an egoistic monologue of him being just like the average guy, yet _more_ than the average guy.

"_Superhuman_," Asami repeats, unable to believe his guts and choice of words. She is more than used to getting hit on by insistent men who do not know when to quit, but this is just testing the boundaries of her tolerance.

"So what do you say? Can I show you a low-key night out with a superhuman soon-to-be king?"

And just when she thought she's had enough, he goes on to do something that strips her away of all reservations set by her business-like demeanor – his eyebrows. They move up and down in a supposedly _macho_ fashion that makes Asami want to gag and slap him so hard, she'd send him to Ba Sing Se herself _without _the use of the new railway system.

As she was about to do just that, Mako came in to save the day – and not just for the irksome prince, but for Asami as well, who probably would have been locked in Earth Kingdom prison for years had she done what she had so badly wanted to do.

She watches His Royal Cockiness walk away on account of a summon by President Raiko, but not without first sending a flying kiss her way and a promise to return.

"He's a real charmer, huh?"

Rolling her eyes, Asami turns to Mako, unsure of what to say. "He's... Something."

They talk briefly on how Mako puts up with protecting Wu, whose self-importance would never help him fix a kingdom in shambles. In fact, as far as she knows, he would make things worse.

She chuckles at the detective's attempt at humor. "It's good to see you, Mako. It's been too long," she says honestly. It's been a couple months since they had last met, and she suddenly remembers his brother, whom she hadn't seen for more than twice that length of time. "You hear from Bolin lately?"

"I haven't talked to him for a while, but he's coming in a few days for the coronation." He pauses, a smile forming on his face as he says, "And Beifong told me that Korra is getting in tonight."

The excitement in his tone is contagious and Asami soon finds herself brimming with anticipation, even though she still hasn't resolved the kind of welcome she is going to give the Avatar when she arrives. "I can't wait to see her." Bittersweet memories materialise in her mind, and she thinks back to a time when all seemed right in the world. "It's gonna be weird, having the old Team Avatar back in the city after all these years."

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><p>AN: Wanted to write all the way till the crew discovers Korra's running away, but that will have to wait till next chapter which will hopefully be out soon after the second episode. Thanks for reading!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I know, I said I'll update after the next episode but.. I suddenly had so much to write. The Mako-Wu dynamic in the show is superb, and I wanted to get into that. Enjoy!

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><p>A deep, but inaudible sigh escapes his lips as he watches the eccentric prince dash recklessly around the room. The aristocrat rummages desperately through multiple drawers and cabinets all at once, hoping to find an elusive piece of garment hidden in his vast inventory. <em>Like trying to find a firebender in the North Pole, <em>Mako thinks, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at the amount of clothing being thrown around. He is sipping gingerly on quality Jasmine tea when one barely brushes past the tip of his nose.

"Where is it?" Wu asks no one in particular, looking from side to side with a frantic expression. "I could've sworn I saw it this morning. Is it here? No. Here? No! Mako, I can't find it!"

He shakes his head slowly in an attempt to clear his head, and ignores the rambunctious royal. Leaning into the couch, he takes another sip of the steaming liquid, enjoying the heat as it spreads gradually throughout his body. The frigid cool of the air-conditioned unit had always been inconvenient for the sleuth, whose natural element of fire made him more accustomed to higher temperatures than most people.

After a small hesitation, he allows himself to fully relax into the velvety cushions, figuring it wouldn't hurt to savour the feel of limited luxury while it is still available to him. Just when he had given in to total mitigation, eyes closed in a minute rest, a ball of fabric collides perfectly with his tranquil face. His free hand reaches in to snatch it away quickly so he could get right back to his idle lounging, but recognition strikes him hard when he makes out the shape of underwear. He springs to his feet, tea spilling on the green carpet. Without warning, the soft cotton in his grasp is burned to a crisp.

"What in Spirits' name are you looking for?" he demands, voice shrill. The detective has been through a lot protecting Wu – half a year of security service in which he's had to put up with countless spoiled requisitions, confusing political squabbles and a whole heap's worth of unfathomable haughtiness from the cavalier prince. But he has never had to deal with a crisis as bad as touching Wu's personals. Until now. With his face. He struggles to keep his hands away from the royal's throat as the young man rushes past him to another side of the room.

His charge, unaware of Mako's building frustration and the smell of burning in the air, does not even look at him as he continues the ransack of his own wardrobe. "My yellow scarf! My favourite yellow scarf! What's getting a haircut for if I can't look my best after I get it?"

Mako nearly kicks the table in exasperation, because had he asked sooner, he probably would have avoided the contact with the prince's undergarments altogether. With clenched teeth, he points stiffly towards the coatrack standing conspicuously beside closed double doors. "Would that be it, Your _Highness_?"

The prince's head jerks up, and, almost immediately, a big grin spreads on his narrow face. "You always come through for me, Mako," he says happily as he makes his way over to the coatrack and grabs the top hat and the brightly-coloured scarf hanging limply on one of its arms. Once he is satisfied with the disposition of accessories on his head and shoulders, he snags his cane and regards his bodyguard expectantly.

"What?" Mako asks, rage temporarily stumped by the prince's getting all dolled up. He peeks at the clock. It reads half-past one in the afternoon.

"We're leaving."

"We are?"

The shorter man simply turns towards the door and adjusts his collar. Mako sighs and puts down his half-empty tea cup, which he surprisingly managed to _not_ obliterate despite his ruthless grip on it earlier. Stalking over to the heavy double doors with multiple thoughts condensing in his brain, he absently raises his arms and is about to push them open when he hears Wu clear his throat impatiently. He mentally slaps himself, recalling the many occasions he was chastised for not letting the prince _"leave his room in style." _So he steps away, locks his arms behind his back, and stares straight ahead.

"Open," Wu commands, and the double doors swing outward, revealing a splendid hallway lined on both sides by polished handrails and smaller entrances to other units. He struts out with a smirk, twirling his cane casually. Mako follows behind and nods his acknowledgement to the two doormen.

"I don't know why we're leaving so early if you're just getting a haircut," he tells him. "The dinner at Air Temple Island isn't until later tonight."

"Because I'm not just getting a haircut, it's a spa day!" the prince replies excitedly. "We're talking minimum four hours."

Mako tries to prevent the mortification from showing in his tone, keeping it flat. "Are you kidding me?" He presses the down button for the lift. "What are you having done that takes four hours?"

"A rejuvenating tea leaf skin wrap!"

And just like that, Mako's attention tries its best to shift elsewhere as the prince goes on about bubbling milk baths and tubs of callus-eating suckerfish.

"Mako, look at all my fans!" Wu exclaims when they reach the end of the lobby.

Stepping outside, the firebender hears the jeers interlaced with the applause and his brows furrow, wondering how the future king did not seem to pick up on them. "Uh, I don't know if all of those people are your fans."

Indeed, as his charge presents himself grandly to his audience, Mako notices a few suspicious individuals lurking among the gathered spectators. As a detective, he was trained to detect malicious or spiteful intent early, and to find ways to avoid a nasty confrontation before it even happened, skills which proved useful numerous times in various situations. The handful of scattered men and women wear dirty looks on their faces, and each have a hand hidden behind their backs, obscuring them from view. _Weapons?_ Mako asks himself. Mindful of their green uniforms, he comprehends their affiliation – Earth Kingdom, but not supporters of the monarchy. He sees them inch their way closer towards their intended victim.

He reacts one moment later, running to the oblivious prince and carrying him into the waiting Satomobile, promptly shutting the door before a flurry of pies fly toward them. Safely inside, he shouts "Go!" to the driver, and the vehicle accelerates forward, bringing them away from palpable discord. It all happened in a flash.

"What just happened out there?" Wu demands, clearly unnerved by the experience.

Mako reflects on the similar uniforms each of the assailants had been wearing. "I think those were Kuvira supporters in the crowd," he says, recalling the face of the former captain of the Zaofu guard. Now in the process of unifying the dispersed states of the Earth Kingdom and backed by a powerful army of earthbenders - one that included his own younger brother, Kuvira is perhaps the biggest adversary standing between Wu and his throne. It amuses Mako that he and Bolin are, for all intents and purposes, on opposite sides of this conflict.

"Oh no, Mako, I've been hit!" the murky-eyed royal exclaims, clutching his stomach which is stained a deep red. "It's a gusher!"

"That's not blood," he responds smoothly, by now used to his charge's melodramatic nature. "It's strawberry pie."

* * *

><p>Air Temple Island, Asami noted, hasn't been this empty in months. The sky is a vivid orange as the sun begins to set beyond the horizon. The training grounds lay empty as she walks past, abandoned by the Air Nomads who were preoccupied with bringing balance to the world – except, not really. Even they knew, according to one of Tenzin's stress-induced revelations, that they could never really fulfil Korra's ultimate task by themselves. But spirits, did they try.<p>

As the months went by after they had pledged to be all-around enforcers of justice, less and less airbenders stayed at their official "hub" for prolonged periods of time. Nobody is surprised; there are more pleas of help and calls of distress coming from around the world than there are members of the Air Nation.

Still, looking around her, Asami is a little bewildered to find absolutely no one there. A month ago, the last time she'd paid a visit to the original airbending family to discuss with Tenzin a pending upgrade to the legendary flight suits of her design, Air Temple Island was far from deserted. Even at sundown, she'd seen about a dozen nomads either training or meditating, giving life to an otherwise dreary piece of land. Now, with stillness surrounding her, she can't help but think once more about the reason for their disappearance - The once-majestic Earth Kingdom. Oh how far it has fallen.

She reaches her destination. The sea breeze caresses her skin as she jumps over the edge of a small rock formation, hair flowing wildly behind her. It's been a while since she's stepped on anything that wasn't tile, brick or concrete, and she relishes the feel of soft sand below her boots when she lands. No sooner than she looks up does a wave of nostalgia hit her. And it hits her hard. For, across the mass of water stretched out before her, a brilliant glow emanates from an impressive structure she once found to be the centre of all things fun and entertaining – the Pro-bending Arena.

Flashes of the past flicker in her mind, some having taken place directly in the massive stadium inside the ornate building, and some simply relevant to the people she had met and grown to love, who had history tied to the place. Watching the Fire Ferrets in action with her presently aloof father, seeing the graceful Korra in all her bending glory for the first time, crashing into Mako on her Moped and subsequently falling in love with him, in no chronological order.

"I sort of expected to find you here."

Startled, but managing to keep her composure, she mumbles, "Speaking of the devil." She is not at all bothered by Mako's company, but she figured she had some alone time to think before dinner. _Before Korra arrives. _

From the corner of her eye, she sees the detective walk up beside her and sit down, seemingly uncaring of the sand sticking to his trousers. "I come down here too, when I can," he says. She glances down and registers the distant look on his face. "Brings back a lot of memories. Those were the days, huh?"

"Yeah," she responds absently.

They both stay there for a while, not really having to say anything, because the silence, while perceptible, is not unwelcome. Nor uncomfortable.

During their reticent stroll down memory lane, Asami finds herself sitting alongside Mako, and leaning her head on his shoulder; not a romantic gesture, they both know. The two friends are close enough to understand each other in a way that prevents awkwardness and embarrassment from manifesting between them.

After a while, when the sun is well on its way to completely disappearing from the sky, the firebender finds something to talk about. "So Korra..."

Asami recognises the tone in Mako's voice, and she sits up straight so she could look right into his amber eyes. There is worry behind them, and nervousness. She understands these emotions all too well. Her gaze moves from his to the water lapping at the shore a few feet away. She brings her knees up to her chest and rests her chin on them. "Korra," she repeats.

"Do you.." Mako hesitates, seemingly unable to put his thoughts into words. "Do you ever wonder how she is?" The raven-haired woman knows what he is really asking: Do you think she's okay? Do you think she's recovered? Do you think she's back to being the Korra we once knew - _our_ Korra, so stubborn and reckless and bright?

But Asami doesn't know, so she addresses his original question. "Always," she whispers simply, eyes still cast downwards.

Mako, perhaps remorseful of bringing up such a solemn topic and asking something they were bound to discover the answers to in an hour or so, veers the conversation into more discussable material.

"So you've met Wu," he says, a small smile playing on his face.

She lets out a groan, recalling the sequence of events that played out earlier that day. Amusement lights up her features as she says, "You know, you're lucky you came over just when you had, or you would've had to protect your silly little prince from _me._"

He chuckles. "Unbearable, am I right?"

She rolls her eyes. "I thought you were exaggerating before."

"I clearly wasn't."

Drawing tiny circles on the sand with a restless finger, she ponders whether or not she should speak what had been lingering on her mind since her meeting with Wu. She had thought about it all day, because, between that and the Korra issue.. Well, she didn't even want to think about the Korra issue until it came. At last, she decides to go for it, because Mako, discerning and insightful as he is, can maybe put to rest the troubling ideas running in her head.

"Do you think he'll be a good ruler?" she asks. Concern is evident in her tone; the idea of a pompous, ignorant, and heavily-coddled royal assuming kingship over a country filled to the brim with inconceivable disarray is something to be concerned about.

Mako's jaw clenches shut, and she observes the tight muscles underneath expose themselves briefly. She sighs. This was her answer.

"Thought so." But Asami, ever the optimist, insinuates a worse scenario to counter the already terrible one. "Better than Kuvira, at least."

Kuvira, whose power-hungry reputation as the Great Uniter had spread like wildfire across borders and oceans. Whose infamy in conquering towns and states through the use of blackmail and other dirty means have propelled her to the likes of Chin the Conqueror and Unalaq of the Northern Water Tribe. Whose name instills fear and despair in many Earth Kingdom citizens, in spite of her effort to rally them all under her superior banner. No matter how bad Wu would be as King, he is undoubtedly a much better option than the former Zaofu guard.

Having convinced herself of this, she is utterly and thoroughly shocked to find that Mako disagrees.

"I'm not so sure," he says thoughtfully. "She does have plans for her people, unlike Wu who might just run the place down. Maybe she can drive the kingdom into actual progress. She was brought up under Suyin Beifong's nose after all."

A frown settles on her face as she contemplates his words. He has a point, and he seems convinced about it, too. Still, it doesn't seem right to support the rise of a conquering dictator. "You're a Kuvira supporter," she states bluntly.

He snaps his head towards her, eyes wide in surprise. "No! I'm not! I just.." He plays with a button on his shirt. "I can't decide. Wu may be shallow and conceited, but he's not a bad guy. Certainly not king-material, but who knows? Maybe he'll get there."

"You're full of 'maybes' today," Asami remarks, emerald eyes boring softly into amber ones. "But Kuvira.. They say she's kind of ruthless, don't they?"

Mako drops her gaze and looks out to the horizon. "I've heard the rumours. They're probably true," he acknowledges. "But if Bolin trusts her, and is out there helping her _voluntarily_.. She can't be all that bad."

And with those words, Asami's perspective has shifted; her friend's opinions have swayed her own. Personally, she had never really thought about the earthbender's allegiance to the Great Uniter. Now it seems odd that Bolin – kind, compassionate and caring Bolin, whose sense of humour never failed to brighten up anyone's day, and who was always desperate to help others in need, no matter the cost to his own self – would be supporting a monster wholeheartedly. Kuvira must not be as evil as she is often portrayed, or Bolin would have earth-catapulted himself out of her grasp long ago.

She hears an air acolyte call out to them, but she is not shaken from her train of thought. The Earth Kingdom, what kind of leader does it need? A sanctimonious monarch, or a totalitarian fascist? Tradition or evolvement? Balance or progress?

"Dinner is ready!" the messenger shouts once more. She does not even acknowledge him, still in the midst of processing her new outlook on the issue. "Tenzin summons the both of you!"

It is Mako who responds. "We'll be right there!" He turns to meet Asami's eyes again, fully knowing the impact his words have made on her.

She stares back at him, and they take a few more moments to think. A few more moments to mull things over. Because torn between an incompetent, but good-natured prince and a tyrannical, but forward-looking warmonger, they struggle to determine which of the likely rulers is the lesser of two evils.

* * *

><p>"You've never had the tea leaf wrap?" Wu says loftily to a beaming President Raiko and his revered wife. "You have no idea what you're missing. The face massage alone is to die for!"<p>

Mako studies them from afar, his earlier conversation with Asami thrust to the back of his mind by his charge's cheekiness. Instead, he thinks of his freedom from this horrid assignment, his return to doing what he loves most. And it is only in a few more days. A few more torturous, burdensome days. Grunting, he says, "This coronation cannot come soon enough. I can't wait to go back to being a detective." He smiles at that last part.

Beside him, he hears the esteemed Chief of Police inhale sharply. "Right.."

He does not like the sound of that. He turns to see her grimace a little, unfolding her arms to face him.

"Um, yeah, about that.."

"What?" he insists, perturbed.

"I don't know how to tell you this," Lin says, scratching the back of her head.

Beads of sweat start to form on his forehead, expecting bad news. Like, perhaps, having to undergo a necessary month-long re-training programme for those who have been away from the Force for too long, or even worse - a demotion. The latter being the most tragic thing his mind can conjure, he is in no way prepared when his superior blurts out the next few words:

"You're going to Ba Sing Se with the Prince."

He feels like he has been hit in the nuts by a flying Satomobile. Disbelief and desperation are evident on his face. "No!" he half-shouts at her, hysterical. His arms cling frantically onto her shoulders, and his wide eyes search her face for any sign that this is all just a big joke. _Ha-ha. Let's make fun of Mako. It'll be hilarious._ He finds none.

"I tried to get you out of it," Lin tells him sympathetically. "But it's over my head."

He lets go of her and groans, his mind straining itself to find a way out of this mess. A scowl is locked in place.

"Wu personally asked Raiko," his boss continues. "He says he doesn't know what he'd do without you."

"This can't be happening! I'm not even an Earth Kingdom citizen, I work for the Republic City Police Department!"

"Not anymore." Her gaze travels to the chatting triad of government officials, and his follows. "You're just a pawn in Raiko's diplomatic game. You can try talking to him, but I don't think he's going to let you quit."

He sighs. Oh he will. He _has _to. Because he is going to give that greedy, self-indulgent president a piece of mind, and he is never going to leave him alone until-

"There's a Southern Water Tribe ship pulling up to the dock," an air acolyte declares, cutting off his suddenly malicious thoughts of how to 'persuade' Raiko to let him off. The bone-shaking anticipation that has been an intermittent presence the entire day resurfaces again._  
><em>

Echoing his thoughts, the airbender kids simultaneously shout, "Korra!"

* * *

><p>Asami paces herself beside Mako, behind the small ensemble of people who had gathered to welcome Korra back. Goosebumps cover her arms as the rush of adrenaline seizes her body. She can hear the throbbing of her heart in her ears as she watches Tonraq and Naga exit the massive Southern vessel, the polar bear dog quick to seek contact from familiar faces. Tonraq, with an air of majesty not unlike those surrounding great mountains, makes his way to the approaching Tenzin.<p>

"Tonraq," the airbending Master acknowledges decorously, clasping the other man's hand with his own and shaking it. "It's good to have you back in the city. And everyone is excited to see the Avatar again."

The warm smile on Tonraq's face vanishes almost instantly. A confused expression emerges on his face. "What do you mean?" he asks. "Isn't Korra already here?"

Time seems to stop for Asami at that moment. And vaguely, she is aware that it is the same for Mako, too. Her heart drops, and she turns to him. He wears a similar look of heartbreak.

* * *

><p>AN: Apologies for the lack of Korrasami so far. Nothing much can be done when the Avatar hasn't made her appearance yet. There will be a lot to come though, either next chapter or the one after that! Stay tuned.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I have never really emphasised this before, but this story closely follows the events in the series (until this chapter), so if you're not up-to-date with the latest TLOK episodes, be warned that spoilers are everywhere.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Never in her wildest dreams did Korra imagine that she'd run into the notoriously absent Toph Beifong in any of her journeys, let alone get to spar with her. True to her name, the old woman had been tough as nails, defenses completely impenetrable; she was like a human mountain. The Avatar had come across dozens of talented benders in her lifetime, but clearly the earthbending master is on a whole other level. Even if they had fought in her state before the whole Red Lotus ordeal, she suspects she wouldn't have been able to keep up with Toph for very long.<p>

Yet, as bewildered as Korra feels to have been trained by the founder of metalbending herself, the absolute thrashing she had gotten at her wrinkled hands is a painful reminder of how far down she's fallen. An old woman. She was beaten up by an old woman. Sure, the Beifong has a long way to go before age truly hampered her immense power, but still.

The shame that washes over Korra interrupts her focus, so she opens her eyes for a small break. She breathes slowly, deeply, taking in the sight of the murky river in front of her, seeing her reflection staring back. She had chosen a perfect spot to meditate.

"You're the Avatar," she says out loud, glaring daggers at the image of herself on the surface of the water. Her earlier conversation with Toph plays out in her head for the millionth time over.

"_When you want it out, you can bend it out."_

The revelation that there are still traces of the metal poison inside her had been received with downright shock. But strangely enough, Korra is getting the impression that her subconscious mind had this known all along. _Could it be true? Am I rejecting my role as the Avatar?_

That would explain the bizarre visions she's been getting of herself in the Avatar State, a striking mirror image of when she had been fighting Zaheer. She shudders, recalling the day prior when she thought she had been drowning in liquid mercury. Indescribable pain had seized her entire body as she sunk deeper and deeper into hell.

What Toph had said, it makes sense. In fact, it is the only possible explanation to everything – her inability to fight, her unwillingness to return to Republic City, to her friends, to _Asami. _She had simply told herself that she didn't want to seem weak in front of them, in front of the world, for the world will never welcome back a broken Avatar. But maybe there was another reason..

"._.So you don't have to worry about getting hurt again."_

Unexpected laughter erupts from Korra's mouth, and her shoulders shake from each cackle. She falls backwards into damp weeds and stares at the orange sky above her, blocked partially by thick vines and trees that seem to be breathing with life. The pettiness of it all amuses her.

For months, she's been running away from that dark version of herself, unable to face its malicious glare. It wasn't until recently that she had actually gotten to _fighting _the other Korra, yet the symbolic resonance of these actions seem to go on to no end.

So she _is _denying her role in the universe – unconsciously of course, but at this point, technicalities don't matter. The question is: How can she accept it again? Clearly her body's refusal is not something she can control. She sighs and covers her face with her hands, wishing once more that the company and guidance of her past lives are still available to her.

At times like this, when she feels entirely lost and alone, the only thing that keeps her moving forward is the thought of one raven-haired woman, and her beautiful emerald eyes. Korra isn't as naive as people often put her out to be; she was aware of the mutual attraction between the two of them before she left. And oh it was so very tempting to have her friend come with, but she didn't know at the time if and when she would ever come back. Depriving Asami of a fulfilling and wonderful life was the last thing she wanted to do, especially when the woman is an exceptional pioneer the world had needed then to progress.

She thinks back to that letter she had written but had never sent, and wonders what Asami would have said in return. Spirits, how she misses her. She doubts that Asami still feels the same after she had made her wait so long, and it crushes her to know that. Still, the need to see her runs strong, even after all these years. Korra _needs_ to get better so she can return and do just that.

So she sits up, ready for another round of focused, relentless meditation to find a solution to her otherworldly woes, but stops short when she sees her reflection again. Because this time, there are _two_. Dark Korra's glowing eyes are narrowed to slits when they bore into hers from the water. The Avatar's gaze travels to her side, and a small gasp escapes her parted lips when she sees the malevolent entity looming over her. The hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. " You.." she sputters out. "What- what do you want? Tell me." As frightened as she is, she is determined to get to the bottom of this. Maybe talking to the apparition will help her. Maybe something will click afterwards, and she'll be able to will herself into bending the wretched metal out of her system for good.

"Well," the other Korra droned. Her mouth is moving, but the voice that emerges from it is nothing like her own. "I want a hot spring bath in one a those swamp jacuzzis." Korra blinks rapidly in utter confusion. When her vision settles, she is startled to find a tall man dressed in leaves and tree bark looking down at her. "Ey, missy, are ya alright? Ya look like ya seen a ghost."

* * *

><p>Asami grimaces when she sees the anomaly on her radar. That could only mean one of two things – either her navigation system is faulty, or she had misread her bearings earlier and had been going in the wrong direction for nearly an hour. It has to be the latter. Groaning, she turns the wheel sharply. She shifts her body weight as the airship banks to the left and makes a full one-eighty, all the while chastising herself for her error.<p>

Her lips curve downward when her eyes sweep over the map. The trip to her next destination would no doubt take much longer now. A couple hours at the very least.

Sighing, Asami plops down on the pilot's chair and rests her elbows on the armrests. She stares blankly at the darkness outside the massive window of the flight deck. Having nothing but the stars to look at at night, she instead spends the next ten minutes thinking of a certain azure-eyed girl when a red light starts blinking on her radio display. _An incoming transmission? _She curses under her breath, not wanting to be bothered. The caller is insistent however, so she resentfully reaches out to flick a switch. Mako's voice booms out from the speakers nearly instantaneously.

"_Where on earth are you?"_

A grin creeps up to her lips as she grabs hold of the microphone stand, earlier frustrations forgotten. "Hello to you too, Mako. You at the Police Station?"

"_Yeah, but forget that. So you weren't around for Wu's coronation today, that much is understandable-"_

"That was today?" she says, feigning innocence. "I'm sorry, it escaped my mind."

"_But when I went over to your place earlier this evening to tell you about everything that had happened, your butler tells me you're on this solitary mission to bring Korra back."_

Her eyes widen, but she refrains from letting her surprise show. She makes a mental note to berate Shin later for ratting her out to Mako when she specifically told him not to. "Shin said that? Wow, he gets so dramatic sometimes, I just-"

"_Are you looking for Korra, Asami?"_

She hesitates, contemplating whether or not to tell him the truth. A few nights ago, when Tonraq arrived without Korra, the two of them had gotten into a small dispute over leaving Republic City in search of the missing Avatar. Asami was all for it, of course, but the practical firebender insisted that they wait until they had more leads to her whereabouts before making a move.

However, after Mako confessed that he was unable to change the mind of one stubborn Raiko into letting him off Wu duty, Asami found that she could wait no longer. She had gathered her things immediately, and left alone in her company's fastest airship. That had been yesterday. Since then, she's stopped by nearly a dozen towns and cities in the Earth Kingdom in hopes of finding clues that will lead her to Korra. She's had no luck so far, but she wasn't about to give up.

Clearing her throat, she effortlessly wills her voice to be smooth when she speaks. "No, I just have a few clients in the Earth Kingdom that I need to-"

_"Earth Empire," _Mako interrupts once more.

She furrows her brows in confusion. "Sorry?"

The detective's uneasiness carries out to her end of the line. She hears him take a deep breath. _"It's the Earth Empire now."_

"What-" Realisation hits her hard. Her eyes widen not so much in surprise, but instead, blatant awe. "Kuvira..." she doesn't finish.

"_Has assumed control, yes. Not much of a shocker, really. It's what everyone was saying she would do."_

"Yeah, but.." She struggles for the right words to say. Maybe she should have attended the coronation after all, if only to have witnessed the events that transpired. "How'd Wu take it?"

Mako's sigh sounds more like a huff to her – short and brief. _"Not well. Not to mention I sort of gave it to him earlier about how he isn't really the kind of leader his people would want ruling over them."_

She shakes her head even though she knows he can't see her. "That was rather harsh, Mako," she tells him disapprovingly. "Even if it is Wu."

"_I know, I know. But I think it knocked some sense into him. I feel really bad for the guy. The good news is I won't be heading to Ba Sing Se anymore."_

She can hear a door opening from the other end. Lin Beifong's voice is barely audible, but Asami's adept ears can pick up on her words well enough. _"Wu called. He says you promised you'd stay over for the night to offer full-time protection. He's wondering why you aren't there yet."_

"_Alright, alright, I'll be done in a minute." _Mako grunts before addressing Asami once more, urgency clear in his tone._ "Listen, I don't have much time. I radioed you because you need to get out of Earth Empire territory."_

Asami frowns. "Why? I'm on a business-"

"_Cut the crap, Asami. I know how badly you want to find Korra, and in other circumstances, I wouldn't get in your way. But Kuvira's new empire is currently out-of-bounds to citizens of the United Republic."_

Part of her wants to refute his claim of her search for their friend, but she's aware how useless that would be. "She said that?"

"_And I quote: Anyone who crosses our borders, or stands in our way will be crushed."_

Her eyes narrow, and she glares at the microphone. "Well, she seems to be oozing out charisma," she says sarcastically.

Mako pays no heed to her words. _"You're not on any official Earth Empire business, so you technically have no right to be there, Asami. Come home."_

She pauses, thinking of how to respond. She'd never admitted it to Mako, or anyone, but she is desperate to see Korra safe and unharmed. That doesn't mean she no longer feels rage towards the younger woman, but that's an issue for another day. "I'll find her Mako. Let me find her, and I'll take the both of us home."

"_No, you-"_

Asami doesn't hear the detective's next words, because her eyes have suddenly caught sight of another anomaly on her radar. The white dot representing a vehicle flying directly above the airship however, has nothing to do with location. She smirks, satisfied that she finally gets to kick butt after so long. Standing calmly, she pushes the button for autopilot and ties her hair up in a bun.

"_Asami? Are you there?"_

"Yeah, but I'm going to have to leave now. See you soon, Mako."

She flicks a switch, and Mako is cut off mid-sentence. On her way out of the flight deck, she grabs an electrified glove from the cabinet beside the door. _Foolish bandits. They obviously don't know who's driving this ship._

* * *

><p>Bolin can't sleep. He tosses and turns, but no position is comfortable enough to relax his troubled mind.<p>

For the life of him, he simply can't understand why both his brother _and _his girlfriend are so against his affiliations with Kuvira. She's not a bad person – sure, she may seem like it at times, but Bolin knows that whatever she does, she does it for the good of her – _their_ people. She has the makings of a great leader, and even though he's not usually one to judge based on first encounters, he doubts Wu would ever live up to that.

Mako and Opal, along with the rest of the world just don't realise how hard they've been working for the last three years, uniting the Earth Kingdom, and unselfishly helping those in need. If only there's a way he could show them that he's on the right side..

He sighs, wishing the conflict between them would soon blow over. He feels so alone in this; having to stand up to his friends for doing _good_, it all feels so wrong. _Korra would understand, _he thinks, remembering the girl's loathing of the late Earth Queen, and the suffering the people of her kingdom were forced to undergo.

Loneliness overwhelms him. He shoves his head under the pillow, letting a few tears soak into the bed sheets. Bolin has never really outgrown spontaneous crying.

* * *

><p>AN: Gonna shift into an alternative storyline starting from the next chapter. I'll still touch on the series in some parts, but overall, the plot will begin to deviate quite a lot, hence 'semi-canon'. Hope you enjoyed reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Maybe it was a bit impulsive on Asami's part to have left for her mission completely alone. She had assumed company would only slow her down, but she now realises it wouldn't hurt to have someone manually taking charge of her ship while she goes to fight off unwanted pursuers. Nevertheless, the autopilot technology she had meticulously developed over the past couple of years works just as fine, too.

The engineer whistles a gleeful tune as she reaches a short ladder leading up to a circular hatch. She stuffs a slender hand into her glove and climbs the steps effortlessly. With her ungloved hand, she turns the wheel on the hatch and it creaks open.

Icy winds blast her face when she peeks out. She spots the plane above her and absently recalls designing that model years ago; it was one of the very first vehicles she'd shipped out as head of Future Industries. Vaguely, she makes out two silhouettes in the darkness, one perched on each of the plane's wings. Both of them are preparing to descend.

Asami pulls herself up onto the metal surface of the top of the airship. She quickly adjusts her position, keeping balance as ropes fall at the opposite end, followed by the two figures who land lightly on their feet.

"I don't want to hurt you," she shouts, her voice just barely heard over the combined hum emanating from both aircraft. While she is looking forward to a good fight, her conscience tells her she doesn't actually want to hurt anybody. "Please leave!"

The duo – one man and one woman, now that she has a better view – exchange brief glances before sprinting over to her, armed with sharp, glinting blades that shimmer under the moonlight. She smirks, shifting into a fighting stance.

The man reaches her first. He swings his knife sloppily, and she deflects it by using her arm to knock away his. Her other fist connects with his chin, and the cloth covering his mouth is removed in the process. A follow-up kick to the chest sends him flying.

A moment later, the woman is on her. From the corner of her eye, she sees the man nearly roll off the airship, barely hanging on to its side. Her heart stops in a panic, and she considers bolting after him to save his life. A second later though, the plane maneuvers downwards to his direction, and Asami knows she doesn't have to.

She focuses on the woman in front of her. She looks younger than Asami, perhaps more than a couple years so. But the look of determination on her face tells the engineer that she's been doing this kind of thing for a while. And under hardened features, she spots just a trace of desperation. Interlaced with the rush of adrenaline in Asami's veins comes a wave of sympathy. The woman – the _girl_, is not here to cause trouble; she's here on a mission to survive. Oddly enough, the passion in the girl's eyes reminds her so much of Korra_._

Asami wants to ask her to come inside the airship so she can give her what they came here for – food, water, supplies. But before she can get a word out, the girl's foot makes contact with her cheekbone. She winces, berating herself for not paying attention in the middle of combat. Her opponent jabs her blade forward. Asami side-steps to evade the attack, and places a gloved hand on the girl's shoulder.

Mild electric currents pass into her body, and though Asami's glove is set to the lowest level, it's enough to make the girl's legs give way. She falls to her knees.

"Stop fighting," Asami commands, hints of compassion showing in her tone. She hears the plane just as it moves upward to fly level with her. The man from earlier jumps onto the top of her airship again.

She holds his stare, then walks calmly over to the open hatch. "Come with me, both of you."

* * *

><p>Bolin gets up the next morning with his mouth turned up in a big smile. He jumps out of bed and proclaims a loud good morning to all his bedroom furniture. Then, in a mad rush, he washes his face, brushes his teeth, dresses up in his military suit and gels his hair the way his superior likes it. He has something to tell her today, something that will mend the rift between him and Opal, and maybe Mako, too, once his girlfriend proudly tells his brother all about it.<p>

"You the man, Bolin," he says cheekily, tugging down a stray strand and applying more gel onto it. Satisfied, he winks at himself in the mirror and grins. "Alright. All you gotta do is tell Kuvira, _respectfully, _that you want to be stationed in the state of Yi for a month or two. You know, to help out and bring happiness and stuff."

He knits his brows together, straightening his expression into a perfect Kuvira impression. "No, Bolin, I need you and your awesome skills with me at all times, cause you're so brilliant and important."

His face relaxes, and he blushes at the compliment to himself. He waves his hand nonchalantly. "Oh, you flatter me, Great Uniter, but I believe this is something I must do. See, when we left Yi a few days ago, my heart shattered knowing that I was leaving behind a people who were still in the process of healing. You could even see the sadness in their eyes on our way out!" He widens his green orbs for emphasis. "I know some of our troops are still there doing their job, but I can't help but feel that I should be there too, serving and protecting those in need. I promise you, within two weeks, I'll help shape Yi back to the great state it once was!"

Bolin goes into Kuvira-mode again. "Are you sure about this, Corporal? This isn't because of Opal, is it?"

"No, milady, no. This is not at all because of my lovely, beautiful Opal. This is all me. I mean, sure she may be there, but this isn't some excuse to be with her or something. That's just dumb."

"Alright, Bolin, as you wish. I, Kuvira, hereby discharge you on an honourable assignment to reform the great state of Yi!"

Bolin's pearly-whites are exposed fully by this point. "That's how it's gonna go," he assures himself, looking back at the mirror. "And I should really stop talking to myself."

After a brief hesitation, he leaves his room and makes his way to Kuvira's. Too impatient to wait for the elevator, he proceeds up the staircase instead. He walks with a light spring in his step towards her elegant double-doors. He remembers how he dissed Prince Wu's demotion to a junior suite yesterday, and scratches his head in a guilty fashion. _Not cool, Bo. Not cool._

Kuvira's doors are slightly open, and he stops when he hears two voices deep in conversation. From his position outside, he could only hear certain bits of it. Not like he really intended to, but it doesn't occur to him to walk away.

_"It's power... devastating. Nobody would dare go against us and our army."_ Bolin recognises Kuvira's rich voice.

Baatar Jr. is the one who responds. _"Then the other nations.. us alone. What about Zaofu?"_

_"It's ours."_

His thick brows furrow in suspicion. But just as he moves closer to the gap between the doors where he can hear more clearly, the elevator bell dings from behind him and he jumps away.

Varrick and Zhu Li exit the lift. "Bolin!" Varrick yells eccentrically when their eyes meet. The conversation inside the room is put to a halt. "What are you doing here, you big lug? Didn't see you at breakfast, and man, the egg custard tarts are de-zhu-licious! See what I did there, Zhu Li?"

Bolin smiles uneasily at him. The double-doors open fully and Baatar Jr. emerges. "Varrick, you're late." His gaze travels to Bolin and for a moment the lavabender thinks his little eavesdropping stint has landed him in trouble. But Baatar simply nods in greeting. "Is there anything, I can help you with, Bolin?"

Bolin shrugs. "I uh- no. I mean, yes." He glances at Varrick. "You know what, I'll just come back later."

* * *

><p>AN: Sorry sorry sorry for the lack of updates! I've been really busy (but that's no excuse, is it). I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that the average length of each chapter will probably be reduced to that of this chapter's. But for the good news, I promise to update more frequently, so that balances it off, right?! Tell me what you think in a review. Oh, and in my head, Asami and Korra are gonna be reunited _really _soon, so stay tuned.


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